VetNet®
VetNet® AIHA discussion forum
VetNet® Forum
Lifelong Learning Network
www.vetnetlln.ac.uk
Veterinary Recruitment
Premier Partner Program
Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Chronic conditions after AIHA???
| In August I asked this board about people having experiences similar to the ones I've had with Maddie, my Newfoundland dog. We've solved the issue of her hot spots by putting her on Atopica and changing her food to fish and potatoes only. (You should see her shiny coat now. It was nice before the change in diet, but wow!) However, another issue hasn't been resolved, and that's chronic UTIs. She's been on cephalexin in addition to the Atopica off and on since August. Recently I've been concerned about her gums being pale and the other day I had her at the beach for a walk with some other Newfies and their people. She collapsed on the way back, and both friends were alarmed by it. Today she saw the vet and the radiologist just happened to be there. My vet suggested we do an ultrasound to find out what's going on with her. The good news is that all her organs look good. However, there's some inflammation of the pelves of the kidneys and the lymph node near it, which would be in keeping with the chronic UTIs she has been experiencing, although the last urine culture came up negative. The plan is to have her on cephalexin twice a day for Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through December, then skip a weekend and then do a five day urine culture. Maddie did not have UTIs like this before her diagnosis of a "hemolytic event". (We're working on weaning her off Atopica again.) Anyone have anything like this with their dogs that survived AIHA??? |
| Ruth Aptos |
| Ruth, There are some interesting things going on here so it's good you are being proactive in trying to find the solution. I think in Maddie's case it might be good to have a routine cbc complete blood count done now and perhaps think about repeating those on a regular basis (work this out with your vet as to what kind of a schedule). This will show you if there is any problem now with her blood and will also give you a look at her white cell count which could indicate infections. What's important to understand is that even Atopica is an immunosuppressive drug and in some ways behaves in the same way as prednisone.... by suppressing particular white blood cells in the body. This tips the balance of the immune system a bit off kilter, leaving the body more susceptible to infections. Some female dogs are also just more prone to UTI's. This may have something to do with female dog anatomy. As in humans, the female urethra tract is shorter than the male's and thus can move bacteria from the outside of the body to the inside much easier. What isn't as commonly known by owners is that dogs can have bladder infections and not show signs of them. It is possible that Maddie may have had one on and off for a much longer time than you realize. Obtaining a clean sample is very difficult in dogs so in some cases a vet will use a test called cystocentesis. This involves using a needle to sample the urine directly through the wall of the body into the bladder. This really isn't as painful or awful as it sounds. In some cases this is the only way to really get a good culture (and thus select the perfect antibiotic). I like this website's description of UTI's. http://www.marvistavet.com/html/urinary_tract_infection.html patrice |
| Patrice NYS |
This thread was discussed on 05/12/2008
Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) forum index
This thread is from the Vetnet archive. The live Vetnet forum is active now.
